Nissan Motor Co. plans to expand its portfolio of electric vehicles in the key U.S. market ,in line with demand for battery-powered versions of its mainstay cars and sport-utility vehicles, the firm's chief operating officer has said.

"What’s very important is to do electrification on sedans and SUVs,” Ashwani Gupta said in an interview. "Our focus is on our core products.”

The automaker, which was an early entrant into the EV market with the Leaf a decade ago, is working on next-generation SUVs with electrified powertrain options.